Gundam SEED: Infinite Dreams
by black-klepon
Summary: After Shinn defeated Kira, he fell to the sea also, just to be saved along with Kira. The sudden events changed the Second Bloody Valentine War, and whatever will happen to the world? Summary sucks, I know. No yaoi.
1. Chapter 1

Gundam SEED: Infinite Dreams

Summary: After Shinn fought Kira, he fell unconscious and the Impulse fell down. He was rescued along with Kira. After Shinn decided to stay with the 3 Ships Alliance, ZAFT and Blue Cosmos showed more than they've got before.

Author's note: It is pretty hard for me to write in a condition like this, having an exam almost every day. This story will be updated very slowly, but I'll update as fast as I can, no guarantee. I'll give this story some romance, but I'm trying to make a different ending with additions of OCs here. Ah, some plot twisting also. I forgot the part after Kira was down, so I warped to Athrun fleeing from ZAFT. Beware of OOCs, though I'll make them in characters as much as possible. Some new mechas you might see in here may be too weak or the opposite, so if you have an idea about new mechas, and if you like, please tell me in the reviews, and tell me if you like this story or not. I took some technologies from the fic Gundam SEED: Chaotic Cosmos and The Eden Disaster, so credits to Maderfole. If you don't understand the technologies I use, you could ask me, or see directly into Maderfole's fics. So, without any more babblings, I present to you Gundam SEED: The Infinite Dreams.

Disclaimer: I don't own any Gundam SEED characters and mechas, and Maderfole's techs, I only own the plot and my OCs.

* * *

Chapter 1: The Unwanted Meeting

"Die, bastard, die!" Shinn's voice roared through the dark sky as the Impulse swung its beam saber towards the Freedom.

"Ugh!" Kira grumbled as he moved the Freedom backwards. The Freedom did dodge the Impulse's attacks, but the other attacks did some pretty bad damages to the Freedom. However, the Freedom didn't attack back, which made Shinn kept attacking him.

After the long, intense battle, both pilots had worn out. Shinn did his last attempt to destroy the Freedom; he swung his beam saber towards the Freedom. This caught Kira off-guard, since for some seconds they just float there doing nothing. He reacted a bit too late to Shinn's attack. Shinn pulled his beam saber back and stabbed it to the Freedom.

Kira's eyes widened in surprise, while Shinn smiled victoriously. The Impulse's beam saber did hit the Freedom, but little did Shinn know that he missed the cockpit, instead hitting an area between the cockpit and arm joint.

The Freedom fell down freely, while the Impulse just floated there. Inside the cockpit, the computers started to shut down. Kira managed to shut down the Freedom's nuclear reactor in time, but the damages and small explosions around him knocked him unconscious. The Freedom fell into the ocean, exploded and created huge waves to its surroundings.

Shinn still smiled victoriously in his SEED mode, even though the cockpit was starting to get dark. 'I did it, Mayu… I destroyed the Freedom…' Shinn thought for the last time. His world started to get dark also, but not because of his surroundings, and he closed his eyes. He fell unconscious too, and the Impulse followed the Freedom, falling into the ocean, though the Impulse didn't explode like the Freedom.

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Back in ZAFT HQ, Athrun watched as the Freedom fought the Impulse. When the Impulse finally managed to stab the Freedom, he immediately stood up, yelling, "Kiraa!!!" His eyes widened in surprise, he never thought that Kira could be defeated. He's confused now, should he get out there and defect ZAFT once again, or should he stay here with the Chairman to make peace? After a moment of contemplation, he finally decided to take the path that he had taken before; he could no longer stay here with ZAFT. He ran out of his room, going to the hangar.

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Shinn opened his eyes, waking up in a room he isn't familiar with. He closed his eyes again, trying to adjust himself with the light. He tried to get up, but the pain in his back and head forced him to stay down. He finally got himself comfortable with the area, so he opened his eyes again. 'This room looks somehow familiar…' he thought.

He turned his head and saw someone sitting on a bed side-across him. That person is a boy, maybe a bit older than he is, in Shinn's prediction. He was covered by bandages and bruises, the same as Shinn, if not worse. The older boy noticed Shinn's movement, and looked up to his face. "Oh, so you're finally up?" he asked.

Shinn groaned as his reply. "Urgh… W-Where am I? W-Who are you…?" Shinn asked slowly, looking to the figure he's facing. The older boy's expression turned grimmer and somehow neutral expression, though you could see the guilty feeling in his eyes. "I'm Kira… Kira Yamato," he told Shinn.

Shinn felt that he had seen this guy before, but he couldn't remember when. He dug into his mind deeper, and he finally remembered where have he seen this guy, he was the guy from the memorial. Adding the event from before, and the fact that he's now covered in bandages worse than he is, and also that there has been no battle except for him and the Freedom, the reality clicked in his mind. He jerked up, eyes wide looking to the person across him. "You… Don't tell me… Are you the pilot of the Freedom?" Shinn asked.

Kira looked down, his expression now grim. He didn't answer Shinn's question, making him angrier.

Shinn's brows furrowed, and he gritted his teeth. "Why you… Why are you even here?!" Shinn yelled. He wanted to jump from his bed and strangle him right now, but he couldn't. "Don't you have enough already?! You killed my parents, my sister, and even Stellar… All the precious ones to me! What do you want to do now, kill me also?!" Shinn continued his yelling; all the awful memories from the past came flooding his mind.

"I don't even want to kill people…" Kira finally answered, even though his voice was barely a whisper.

Shinn heard this, and said again, "Why yeah… But the fact is, you killed people already! I don't know how much, but hell yeah you killed people already!" His feelings are mixed up now; hatred, anger, sorrow, confusion and the other. His actions are the result of his mixed up feelings now. But to his surprise, the older boy suddenly jerked his head up.

"I don't even want to kill people! Don't you hear me? I've tried my best to stop myself not to kill any more people, but this is a war! I couldn't stop a war without killing anyone, could I? So do you, ZAFT, the Earth alliance and everybody else! I couldn't predict who's the one I'm not going to kill, and who's the one I'm supposed to kill!" Kira replied, his voice shaking with sadness. "And you're not the only one here who has lost your precious ones, alright?!" he continued quietly, almost in the verge of bursting into tears.

Shinn was taken aback by Kira's statement. He first thought that the Freedom's pilot is a very powerful guy, but he's wrong. Rey had told him that the Freedom didn't seem to want to kill people, just giving them enough harm to retreat. Alright, he knew that, but he didn't know that the pilot could be so… Vulnerable? His anger finally resided somehow, and he talked with slightly better tone. "You… Lost them too?" he asked cautiously.

Kira slowly controlled himself again, but still looked like he could break into tears anytime if pushed too far. "I do… But what could I do to bring them back? Nothing, yes? That's why I decided not to kill any more people, because I don't want to give them more sadness than they have right now. But I can't help but to kill people sometimes, those things happen outside my control…" Kira replied.

Shinn thought about this for a moment. Yes, they are facing a war right now, and they have to kill people sometimes, even though they don't want to, in order to survive. 'It's pretty hard not to kill anyone… But then, this guy didn't really want to kill, even fight anyone… Is it true? Could I believe him? Why… What are the reasons that made me kill people?' Shinn thought. He didn't really know what to do now.

"Where am I?" Shinn asked, still deep in his thought.

"You're in the medical rooms of the Archangel, Kisaka found you, but your Gundam is nowhere to be found, he said," Kira explained to him.

"Medical… rooms?" Shinn asked again.

"Yeah, this is a Natural mothership after all, not like ZAFT's Minerva, which is filled with Coordinators… Naturals injure themselves pretty often, and they heal slower than Coordinators… so yeah."

"Are you a Natural, or a Coordinator then?" Shinn asked, curious about this guy in front of him. Kira, his name, has a pretty unique personalities, in Shinn's opinion.

"I'm… a Coordinator. Though why am I in a Natural ship, you don't need to know. And I need to ask you, why do you even fight in the first place? If I… happen to not kill your precious ones, why?" Kira explained to Shinn.

Shinn kept his mouth shut, he didn't know what to answer. Did he join the war just because of the Freedom? And if Kira didn't kill his family, what are his reasons to fight then? Does he fight to protect the ZAFT then? But if it is so, then the EA will have more reasons to fight again. These questions kept unanswered until Kira spoke up again.

"Oh well, if you don't want to tell me, it's okay. I won't force you. But you need to answer this question: Do you intend to stay with ZAFT again? If you want to, I can try and tell the captain to return you back to them," Kira said, leaning against the wall.

"I… don't know. Should I stay with ZAFT, or stay here, I don't know…" Shinn replied.

"Okay, if that's your answer, you should stay here a bit longer, to see what is the war really like, from neutral people's opinion," Kira said, standing up and went out of the room. "You don't need to go, I'll show you a bit later. You need to rest right now, okay?"

----------

Athrun's mind was filled by a lot of things, from his status in ZAFT, his relationship between Shinn, Kira's safety, Cagalli, the Chairman's intentions, the war, and a lot more. He couldn't think properly now, his instincts told him that he should just go to the hangar right now.

"Hey you! Where are you going?" a soldier shouted when Athrun ran past him. Athrun didn't answer, he didn't need to. He just kept running until he reached the hangar. The soldier rang the alarm of intruder, echoing in all the area of the base. Rey, who's currently off duty, ran out of his room to the soldier's place. "What… Who's the intruder?" he asked.

"The… intruder?" the soldier asked, not sure.

"Yeah, the reason you rang the alarm!"

"Oh, that! That's Athrun Zala, sir!" the soldier answered.

"Athrun? He… Where did he go?"

"To the hangar, sir! He didn't mind my warning, he kept running there, sir!"

'To the hangar?' Rey thought. 'Why is he there… Oh damn.'

"Keep an eye to everyone going to the hangar after this. Do you understand?" Rey asked.

"Yes, sir!" the soldier saluted him as he took of, chasing Athrun to the hangar.

Athrun arrived at the hangar mush faster than he thought. A soldier noticed him, and shouted, "Hey! What do you think you're doing in here?! Get out!" The soldier finished, but Athrun didn't give him a damn. The soldier got annoyed, and he aimed his gun to Athrun. Athrun dodged all of them, and got into the soldier's back. In an instant, the soldier fell down, and Athrun took his gun.

That amount of time is enough for Rey to arrive at the hangar too. He saw Athrun running to the only available machine, the Gouf. He immediately chased Athrun, raining him with bullets.

Athrun saw Rey coming, so he decide to run to the nearest hiding place, and that's the counter for the Gouf. He ducked behind the counter, and shot Rey back. None hit anyone, though. After a brief moment of ricocheting here and there, Athrun managed to enter the Gouf's cockpit. He turned the systems on, thus bringing the Gouf to its feet.

Rey, seeing the Gouf powered up, took the phone next to the door, and told the engineers to close the hangar gates. But he was too late, Athrun slipped out of the gate just in time. Not wanting to let him go, Rey ran again to his own Gundam, the Legend.

----------

Shinn still laid on his bed, his eyes closed, deep in thought. His meeting with Kira, what Kira'd said had caused some doubts about his reasons to fight. Thinking of it again, he didn't really want to kill people at all… And he probably took other people's family or friends… But the Chairman has trusted him, staying here will only make him a traitor! Maybe he should stay here a bit longer… to prove what Kira had said.

He stirred, couldn't go back to sleep. He then decided to just get up, and went out of his room. He didn't know where to go, so he just followed the corridor. After getting lost here and there for a lot of times, he finally arrived at the bridge. He saw Kira and maybe his friends and the captain, probably discussing something important, if you look them in the faces. Not wanting to disturb them, Shinn turned again, but somehow Kira saw him at the last moment, and so he called him.

"Hey, Shinn, come here please?" Kira called him. All heads in the room turned to him, and he received some uneasy looks from several people. He looked around nervously, and stammered forward. "Uh, yeah? What's the matter, Kira?"

Kira pointed to the radar they're all facing. A blinking spot… no, two blinking spot were chasing each other. Shinn blinked again. "What… are these things?" he asked.

"That's why Kira called you," someone replied for him. Shinn turned to search for the voice, and found it. 'Hey… That's Athha!' Shinn thought, which made him frowned a bit. Cagalli noticed this, and frowned a bit also.

"What, not happy seeing me?"

Shinn turned away, saying, "No… it's not that… Really…" he muttered.

Cagalli was shocked, and Kira too, but slightly less than her. If she remembered correctly, the last time they met, he was about to punch her out, if it wasn't because of the Chairman there. But now, there aren't anyone so important to stop him… and he just stopped right there?! He might be just afraid to Kira, but Kira's not in a better shape than he is now! Something had happened, she thought… But now's not the time to think about that! What are these two things?

Shinn approached Kira, and peeked onto the radar. Shinn observed the radar pretty closely. He scratched the back of is head, trying to think of something. Then it hit him. "Oh yeah! That's a Gundam!" Shinn exclaimed.

"… But to think of it, what's it doing out there, with a single Mobile Suit, without any soldiers?" Shinn asked again.

----------

Athrun kept his distance off the Legend, but the Legend was approaching him slowly. He didn't want to fight, so he kept dodging him. After some minutes of tag game, the Legend finally managed to hit Athrun. The left arm of the blue Gouf exploded, making Athrun lose control for a second. But being a soldier for years and an experienced one, Athrun quickly controlled the Gouf again. He continued to run away from the Legend, but another shot that hit his right foot made him stop. He shot his beam rifle to the Legend, but it easily dodged the beam. He lashed out his electro-whip to the Legend, but the Legend shot the whip down.

Rey was getting tired of all this. He frowned, then sighed. He opened a comm line to Athrun, and said, "Athrun, can you just stop please? If you do and return to the ZAFT, I'll tell the Chairman to spare you."

"If I wanted to return to ZAFT, I'd stop and turn over from the beginning already… I am not returning there, regardless of what you'll do to me."

Rey sighed again. "Okay, if that's your choice. I'll get you right here then."

Then the Legend released its DRAGOON system. They quickly surrounded Athrun and began shooting beam lasers to him. The damaged Gouf couldn't move very fast, but it still dodged the barrage of lasers.

Athrun cursed as he kept the Gouf dodging the lasers, but to his misfortune, the Gouf got shot again, this time near the cockpit. The explosion made him lash forward and backwards again. Thank God they created seat belts.

When the Legend was about to shoot his own beam rifle, another green laser flashed through and destroyed his beam rifle. Rey was surprised seeing this… he hadn't seen anything near him except for the Gouf. Then one of his screens showed a blinking spot which is moving near him in a pretty quick speed… faster then his Gundam could move. When he was off-guard, another laser hit one of his DRAGOON systems. The source of the beam lasers finally showed up, but the real image of it was very blur… what Rey could tell was that it is a Gundam… a pretty big one, but not much bigger than his.

Athrun was surprised that something actually stopped Rey… he never saw one of that coming. But he thanked his savior, anyone who might that be, who just saved his life. He saw a huge Gundam thrusting towards the Legend, but couldn't get more than just a blinking spot from his radar.

Without any more warning, the unknown Gundam dashed forward, drawing its anti-ship sword and slashed the Legend's right arm. The Legend fell clumsily backwards, certainly Rey hadn't expected this.

Athrun sighed in relief as he saw the Legend trying to counter the unknown Gundam, but to no avail. The damage from the earlier explosion caused him some bleeding wounds, and he felt the dizziness wave coming to him.

Rey cursed and moved the Legend out of the way. But this thing kept on attacking him, and he hated it! He couldn't counter it back, and the worse thing is he keeps on receiving blows! But it didn't seem to blow him up, it's just kind of trying to drive him back. After a few more blows, his damages were more than minor now, he'd lost 4 more of his DRAGOON systems. But he had to get Athrun… and he did his final move before retreating.

The wave of dizziness struck Athrun more than 3 times now, and he needs some rest right now. He was damned tired from all the running away, and yet he had to fight the Legend. He's feeling somehow safe right now… knowing that the unknown Gundam's probably an ally. But then the Legend's beam laser hit him just above the cockpit, totally disabling the main camera. "Uargh!" he yelled in pain as shards from the broken screen hit him. Blood came through his wounds… he's losing not a few amount of blood right now.

His last vision was the Legend backing away, returning to the base and the Gundam caught his Gouf, as he slowly blacked out.

----------

One of the Archangel's crew has gotten the view of the battle, which was viewed by everyone on the bridge.

After the Legend retreated, Shinn's jaw slightly dropped. "But… that's Rey… and he's usually very hard to beat… and that's a new Gundam!" Shinn exclaimed.

Kira and Cagalli nodded. "I know… but what is that thing that just come by and drove him back?" Cagalli said back.

"Hey, it's kinda heading our way… don't you think so?" Shinn asked again.

"Yeah, it _is_ heading our way… What shall we do, captain?" Kira asked.

"Prepare the ship if it decided to attack… But wait for some more time," Murrue replied.

"Receiving incoming data, ma'am… It's from the unknown Gundam. What to do, cap'n?" one of the crew asked.

"Read what it says, and what it wants."

"Yes ma'am," the crew replied and continued, "Asking permission to enter the Archangel, I bring no harm, I'm not going to attack you either, as the Chief Representative is on board."

"Huh? It knows me?" Cagalli said, a bit confused.

"Then it must be an ORB Gundam… But do you have anything new produced back there in ORB, Cags?" Kira asked.

"Nope, I don't, but I don't know what has that bastard Yuuna did."

"So what now, cap'n?" the crew asked again, not knowing what to do.

Murrue thought for a moment, then said, "Fine then, open the gate, but prepare the soldiers… Just in case."

"Yes ma'am."

"Kira, Cagalli, you should check it out… you too, Shinn," Murrue told the teenagers.

"Yes cap'n."

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The three teenagers arrived at the hangar to see the thing that had saved a ZAFT pilot. The Gundam was pitch black, as dark as the night could get, with wings folded on the back. The black Gundam put the broken Gouf to the floor, and shut itself down. The cockpit opened, and a boy went out. Some crews of the Archangel crowded around the black Gundam as the boy came down; some went to the broken Gouf. The boy wasn't in a pilot suit, just in plain military uniform.

The boy, who had black hair and eyes, saluted Cagalli, Kira, and Shinn. "Sir! Commander Jirou reporting!" the boy said to the three people in front of him, mainly to Cagalli. "I'm sorry if I disturbed you, but I wanted to return the Gouf to you."

"Huh? Why? It's not even ours, it's ZAFT's!" Cagalli exclaimed, a bit dumbfounded.

"Oh? Haven't you found out who's inside the Gouf? He needs some care, since he's wounded… Let me show you," Jirou said as he walked to the broken cockpit and opened it. Kira was the first to catch up with him, stared and said-more like yelled, "Athrun!"

"What? Athrun?!" Cagalli and Shinn said in unison as they ran to Kira.

Athrun was sitting on the pilot seat, blood seeping from his wounds. Kira brought Athrun out, and Cagalli yelled for an immediate help. After the medical team arrived and took care of Athrun, Cagalli, Kira and Shinn went to Jirou again.

"Hey, thanks for the help, Jirou…" Kira didn't finish his sentence, since he doesn't know what his last name is.

"Jirou Asuka, sir, pleased to meet and help you," Jirou replied Kira, bowing.

"Hey, how old are you?" Cagalli asked, curious about this Jirou. He didn't seem to be a lot older than Kira and herself, so…

"Eh? My age? I, uh… am seventeen," Jirou replied, a bit surprised with his Chief Representative's question.

"SEVENTEEN?!" the three of them yelled.

"Uh, yeah… Why?" Jirou asked back.

Cagalli shook her head while Kira drew in some breath and Shinn, jaws dropping.

"You are one year younger than both Kira and me, and you're a commander?" Cagalli asked again, wanting to make sure.

"Well, yeah… Experience talks," Jirou replied with a shrug.

"That's just nuts," Kira finally spoke up. "I'll go with you," Shinn added.

"By the way, what's your last name again?" Kira said, since the name sounded somehow familiar.

"Huh? Asuka, that's my last name."

Shinn's eyes widened in surprise, as Kira too, did the same.

"How come you've got the same last name as Shinn here?" Cagalli asked.

Jirou was shocked by the statement too. He looked at Shinn, then said in a low tone, "Shinn… In the term of, Shinn Asuka?"

"Well yeah!" Shinn exclaimed. "Mind telling me why is your name the same as mine?"

Jirou nodded, somehow reluctantly, and said again, "I'd be happy to, but it's a long way back, so I think you'd get a seat."

"And anyway, is Athrun going to be okay? He's injured pretty badly… shouldn't you leave me and check on him instead?" Jirou asked.

"We'll get to him after you're done… And explain to Athrun too," Cagalli replied.

Author's note: Okay, that's the first chapter, just for the introduction and prologue. Bet you'll all know who's Jirou right now. OCs will be coming from now on… though not very much. But for the main clearance is on the next chapter. Okay, if y'all would be somehow kind enough to give me at least one review, I'd be very grateful. Until then on the next chapter.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: I thank you guys for reviewing the first chapter… last chapter was a bit of hurried one… so I don't have any time to add more details. This chapter will probably be the same… blame the stupid exams that stressed me out. Oh, and this story is mostly made by my brother… I'm just helping with the story to go. Well if you notice any vocabulary or grammar mistakes, I'd very much appreciate it if you guys would tell me in the review. There are some OOCs inside... so bear with it, okay? We (my brother and I) don't ask much… Just a single sentence is okay… Tell us what do you think of this story, good or bad, but please don't give us flames. Oh well, anyway, on with the story.

Disclaimer: I don't own any Gundam SEED characters and mechas, and Maderfole's techs, I only own the plot and my OCs.

Chapter 2: The Truth Behind

* * *

Rey returned to the base, feeling a bit annoyed. He couldn't take Athrun down, and yet he was knocked out down by that unknown Gundam. His Legend landed on the hangar, and he went down from the cockpit by the rope.

His mind wandered to Shinn… He has defeated the Freedom, hasn't he? Why hasn't he returned? He could've also fallen down along with the Freedom… Maybe that was Athrun's reason to run from ZAFT? To search for his friend… Kira, is that his name?

But if he did fall down, why didn't the Chairman told him to search for him also? The Chairman must've known, right? He somehow felt that he lost someone that's pretty important to him… Shinn may not be his best friend, but he sure was a good comrade. But that feeling was quickly replaced by his angry feeling towards Athrun and strange feeling about Shinn… Athrun had betrayed ZAFT, again, and most importantly, Gil. He has to report to Gil now… about what had happened before.

* * *

While the four teenagers walked to the meeting room, Cagalli stopped and said, "Uh, guys, you go ahead… I need to meet Athrun…"

The three boys looked to her, and Kira nodded to her. "I think so too… You're probably the one person he wants to meet when he got up later. Go Cags, you have some matters to finish with him right?" Kira smiled.

Cagalli beamed back at him, and nodded. "Thanks Kira, you're the best! Take care of the things for me, okay?" she yelled as she turned and went into the medical room.

Kira and the others then continued to walk. Shinn suddenly asked, "Hey, this thing's been kinda bothering me, Kira-if you don't mind me calling you that-is Cagalli… your sister?"

Kira stopped for a moment, then walked again. "Well, yeah… although we've never met each other until the First War… we're separated since we were born…" Kira replied quietly. "And yeah, I don't mind you calling me Kira."

"Oh, right…" Shinn replied. He never knew Kira had a sister… he himself had one, and… No, now's not the time to remember back that awful memories, certainly not. He might just burst into tears with remembering those events… and again, this one man next to him that may has a family connection with him.

"Well, Jirou, mind telling us why do you have the same family name as Shinn? Though it may be inappropriate for me to ask, that should've been Shinn's rights to ask," Kira started the conversation.

Jirou looked to Shinn, asking for confirmation. "Do you want me to tell my history?"

Shinn just nodded, didn't know how to reply.

"I think I better summarize it… it'll took too long to tell them all."

"Just… tell me, will ya?" Shinn finally said.

"Okay, okay… Well, I was born from the Asuka family, the same as you…" Jirou started.

"So that basically means, that you're… my brother?" Shinn asked cautiously. Things just come too quickly now, he doesn't know how to get used to it!

Jirou nodded. "Yeah… But when I was around one, I was adopted by someone… If I'm correct he said that he was a distant family from mom and dad. They gave me to him, and I just followed him, 'cause I didn't know anything. I live with him, like, for 10 years. After 10 years, he showed me my real mom and dad… and even though we only met for a short while, I was very happy to be able to see them again. They told me everything when I was gone, and told me that I have two more siblings… I saw the picture of you, Mayu, mom and dad."

Kira and Shinn listened intently to Jirou's explanation, wanting to know more about this new guy. Shinn couldn't believe what he just heard, he has a brother-a long lost brother! But he doesn't even know how he is… his personality, etc.

"My adoptive father then took me back after the brief reconciliation. When I was home from school, an unknown special force attacked our city… My adoptive father had no choice but to protect me… He died in his attempt though. That's my first time seeing someone die right in front of me, and that's when I went berserk. I was still a small kid, so they easily captured me. They're Naturals-as I found out later, though that doesn't mean much to me-and I was a Coordinator. My appearance kinda fooled them, so they didn't kill me, instead they put me inside the military, seeing how I fought against them. That's the first time I entered the military, at the age of 11."

Kira and Shinn just nodded, letting him to continue. But the both of them had their jaws dropped inside… military since the age of 11? Man, that's young.

"Thus begins my days of torments. I only stayed with the EA for 2 and a half year though, before I ended up in ZAFT. I learned a lot from my time there… mostly pain. After a lot of life and death training, they put me in a special force, which main duty is to eliminate anyone who opposes us… with dirty works."

"So… you were an assassin, once?" Kira asked.

"Yeah, at the age of about 12 and a half. That's what made my feelings dead years ago, before I moved here. The last time I was with them, was my last mission too."

"And… what is that mission?" Shinn clarified.

"When several important Coordinators went missing in a day? It's okay if you don't know, you don't wanna know anyway. My team was faced by another pro-Coordinator assassin team… and you know the rest. We were annihilated by that unknown team quickly… and I think I'm the only one who's saved… though some of the injuries are permanent, like this scar," Jirou pointed his left brow. "Some of the horrible things that the EA officers did to me helped me to recover faster, and yet, I'm a Coordinator…"

"Uh… horrible things?" Kira asked, a bit of… curious. Not like he enjoyed people suffering, he just wants to know.

Jirou quivered a bit, then replied, "You don't wanna know… those things are damned horrible… even though I only had a bit of them, not like my companions… your clue: Have you ever seen a Frankenstein movie? I experienced some of the things like that, thank you."

Kira and Shinn's eyes widened, and their jaws dropped a bit. "You have got to be kidding me!" they both said in unison. Kira shook his head and shuddered, not wanting to think about it… Frankenstein… he felt like puking now. Shinn just stared at his… brother, with disbelief. He was used like that? To be modified like things?

Jirou saw them acting like that, and grinned a bit. "Okay, drop the topic. I'm not the one asking what at the first place, yeah?" Kira coughed, then let him continue again.

"Then after that, my days as a ZAFT officer begin. They captured me and brought me to the military. I hoped that they'd just execute me so I don't have to suffer anymore… but again, they recruited me after I recuperated. Hell, life's worse there. I did two jobs back then, first an engineer, where I was one of the top engineers, and two, my old job… but this time, with the addition of a partner… or best friend. My team was one of the best, if I remember correctly, even with only 4 or 5 members, including me and my partner. But if I have to say, it's better working as an assassin in ZAFT… you don't really have much work to do… more like, I have another job that is to be done as soon as possible."

Kira and Shinn just nodded at his story, both not knowing what to say.

"So again, my last mission ended up with me quitting ZAFT, leaving fake tracks behind so they wouldn't find me anymore. The rest of my teammates are still in ZAFT though, they promised to never tell me to the higher officers. I've still got a hidden connection to the PLANTS, especially ZAFT… and that Gundam you saw back in the hangar was the newest ZAFT production."

Shinn's eyes widened again. "B-but… won't they know that you stole it?" Shinn exclaimed.

Jirou sighed. "And here they say again… Who do you think I am, back in the hangar? Hello, I was one of the top engineers for the Freedom and Justice project, and so are my teammates. That Gundam is named Archaeus, and that is a top secret project… only my teammates know. Nobody knows about this… that was its first show in public. And why did they give me the Archaeus? 'cause I was the only one who doesn't like to kill, and I hated my old job really damned much. The Archaeus is modified to its use, so I could easily disable my opponents without killing them."

Shinn turned to Kira. Kira muttered something incoherent, facing the floor, but Shinn was a hundred percent sure that he was somehow happy that someone has the same perspective as him.

"Okay, so I suppose that's enough?" Jirou asked, waiting for confirmation.

"Yeah, that's enough, and thanks for your info, Jirou," Kira replied, nodding, followed by Shinn.

"And if you still don't believe me about the last part, you can go check 'em yourself… I ain't lying when I said that I hated killing and the war. I've lost my beloved ones… _No más_." Jirou finished.

* * *

Cagalli sat silently beside Athrun's bed, observing his peaceful sleeping face. His face was covered by bandages, but nevertheless it still looks the same. His condition reminds her about the first time they met on the remote island, when she tried to kill him, but instead ended with helping him. So many things had happened since then… she hoped they'll be able to solve their biggest problem. She saw Athrun stirred and tensed a bit.

Athrun groaned at the light surrounding, trying to adjust himself with the condition. His head hurts like hell, and he feels like being thrown from a cliff. He opened his eyes slowly, and found someone sitting next to his bed. After the image became clear, he then realized that the person that has probably been waiting for him is Cagalli, and he immediately jerked his body up. "Cagalli?!" he yelled, but the enormous pain forced him back down.

"Hush Athrun, it's me. Now just go back to sleep," Cagalli said quietly. She has to finish this matter right now… or she won't know if she'll ever be happy again.

"… Yah, ugh, okay. Here… this is Archangel, right?" Athrun asked as he touched his temple. His head still hurts a lot, though not as much as before.

"Yep, it is."

Athrun nodded in confirmation, but then asked again, "Uh… Then, who brought me here? Last time I remember was being in a cockpit, and…"

"Uh, you'll know… later. You were attacked by a Gundam… knowing you, I think you escaped again from ZAFT. Right?"

Athrun nodded again, confirming her question. He glanced around, seeing that nothing has really changed. He then gulped, remembering the question he needed to ask. "Uh, Cagalli?"

"Yeah?"

"I've got something to talk… about us, if you don't mind…"

Cagalli tensed again, but went unnoticed by Athrun. "Uh, okay."

They both remained silent for a few seconds, and the deafening silence forced them to open their mouths and talk. "Hey, Athrun." "Hey, Cagalli." They said in unison, then blushed a bit. "Uh, you go first," Cagalli gestured Athrun to start. "Nah, you first," Athrun replied. Then silence again. Athrun couldn't stand the silence, so he decided to speak first. "Cagalli?" he asked.

She looked up from the floor, and waited for him to continue.

"Uh… well… I'm sorry, Cagalli," he confessed, with a whisper at the end. He hoped that she will be able to forgive him, though even if she doesn't… well, he guess he might not be able to move on. "When I left you behind to ZAFT… and the things I did that probably hurts you… and many other things I don't know that I probably accidentally did."

Cagalli, hearing Athrun's confession, lightened up a bit. That's the thing she wanted to hear from him, and she's waited for a damned long time! Now here comes her part then.

"Will you… forgive me, Cagalli?" Athrun asked again, waiting for her answer. He kinda had a high hope that she'd say yes, seeing her eyes glinting.

"You're forgiven, Athrun. And in many other ways… will you forgive me also? For… betraying you?" Cagalli asked gain, hopes high too. If this goes smooth, her life could be perfect… maybe.

Athrun smiled, his emerald eyes flashing a bit. "Of course, Cagalli… What would I do not for my queen?" he answered back, with a bit of teasing tone at the end.

Her face turned from happy into annoyed one, and said, "You say that once again, and you'll be in bed for several more weeks… or even months."

He chuckled inwardly, but then said in a made-up afraid tone, "Uh, okay, okay. I don't wanna be here for a time too long." But then he added with a mischievous tone, "Then again… I could use some of that." He chuckled again seeing her pink face.

"Oh why you… even in bed, you could still say something like that. I wasted my worries on things I shouldn't worry about." Cagalli muttered, touching her temple. Her cheeks turned pink at Athrun's comment… she certainly hadn't expected that to come. He's still in bed, but said things like that already… well, that's Athrun for you. But oh well, he couldn't do that in a near time anyway. She somehow hoped that things like that would eventually happen though… she shook her head. Now's not the time to think of that, Cagalli! You've got a bigger problem ahead of you, and you still haven't gotten rid of the freaking bastard Yuuna! Come to think about it, she could probably use some of Jirou's help, if he's going back to Orb sometime soon.

Athrun chuckled and smirked inwardly at her reaction… that must've caught her off-guard. He hasn't seen her like that for a long time now… how he missed those good ol' days. To be honest, he hadn't even seen that coming, those words just slipped out of his mouth. Talk about teenagers with raging hormones… Well, at least their problem is done, and they've forgiven each other. Just one more thing-ending this war, and he'll probably be happy… hopefully. He noticed the embarrassed look on her face had changed into a determined one. "Anything else?" he inquired. "And you haven't told me who saved me."

Cagalli frowned. "Uh, nothing," she denied. "The second question, it's Jirou. For further information, ask Kira… or even better, Shinn, about him. But that's later. Now you get back to sleep, so you'll get better… or you're not getting what you wanted," Cagalli demanded. She smirked at Athrun's reaction, heh, they're even now.

Athrun was taking his breath in after he resisted the urge to laugh and grin, but when Cagalli said the last part of the sentence, he choked. Choked and coughed. He then flushed a bit at Cagalli's statement… more like warning to him though. She countered him, not long after he teased her… well, that's the fiery princess and lioness for you-_his_ fiery princess and lioness, correct that. Ah, he's being possessive again… but isn't that the truth? Past is hard to forget… but future is harder to get. "Okay, okay. You got me there," Athrun gave in, lying back down from his half-sitting position.

"Now you go to sleep, I still have other things to do. Kira'd take care of you for the moment. Or Shinn. It depends anyway," Cagalli finished, standing up from the seat, directing towards the door.

Athrun frowned. Shinn again? "Shinn? What about him?"

Cagalli stopped and turned to face him, and half-glared. "Sleep. You'll know later." With that, she went out of the room, leaving a boy with a questioning look on his face.

* * *

When Kira, Shinn and Jirou were about to arrive at the waiting room, Jirou suddenly stopped into a halt. He slapped his forehead and stepped back, which got him a questioning look from both Kira and Shinn. "Goddamn, how could I forget such a thing?! Shit, tell the Chief Representative I can't explain anything to her right now, okay? I've got to return to Orb-gotta deal with more problems! Uh, see ya!" Jirou hurriedly said as he took off to the hangar. Kira looked at Shinn and pointed over his shoulders. "Let him?"

"Well… yeah. Athha'd probably get angry at him later. You tell her. I ain't doin' that." Shinn decided, with a small smirk on his lips. He shrugged off Kira's look, not wanting to compromise any more.

Cagalli was heading towards the waiting room to meet the boys, but she accidentally bumped into Jirou on the way. Jirou sweatdropped, and waited for her to speak up. "Whatever are you doing, Jirou?" she asked.

Jirou scratched the back of his head, looking for a reason. She just got to be in the right place and right time! "Uh… the hangar?" he answered, couldn't think of any reason. "I need to take the Archaeus back to Orb, since there's… a problem there, regarding the security affairs and mostly, Djibril and Yuuna." Jirou continued, afraid that she'd get mad, a bit hesitantly, like a child being scolded. But instead of asking more questions, her eyes flashed, and he gulped. 'What now?' he thought.

"Orb, eh? I was just wondering when will you get back to Orb… I didn't expect it to be so soon. Eh, anyway, you go to the hangar, while I'll tell the captain that we're going to launch," Cagalli ordered, "Get it?"

"Yes ma'am!" Jirou saluted her, knowing that the few last parts of her sentence used an Admiral tone. She is the real Chief Representative after all, even though most of the Orb military is currently controlled by Yuuna. After she left, he headed towards the hangar, waiting for her to take off also.

Cagalli walked towards the bridge, and passed Athrun's current room. She slowed down, and peeked inside, to see that he's already asleep. She smiled, 'Good thing he listened to my advice,' she thought. She closed the door and proceeded to the bridge.

Inside the bridge, she immediately walked to the captain's chair, and Murrue turned her head. She saw someone else standing beside the captain… Mwu, is that his name? She couldn't remember it clearly… ah, what the heck.

"And what could we do to help you, Representative?" Murrue asked, tilting her head aside. Mwu turned to see Cagalli also, and said, "What brings you here, Representative?"

Cagalli sighed, and massaged her temple a bit. "Please, captain, we're not in a very formal place, don't call me like that. I am not really used to people calling me like that… we're the same, after all," she replied, "Oh yeah, aside from that, captain, I'm going to go back to Orb, since I had some things to take care of. I'm returning with Jirou, and if Kira asked about it, just tell him not to worry about it."

Murrue looked at her neutrally, but you could see the surprised look in her eyes. "If that's your choice, then we've got nothing to do to stop it. But if I may ask you, how are you planning to go back to Orb?" Murrue asked again.

"Where's Kisaka?" Cagalli asked.

"Colonel Kisaka? He's in the hangar, I think," Mwu trailed off, rubbing his chin.

"Alright now captain, all I ask is for your permission to take off. How will I get there, rest assured that you will find me back at Orb, safe and sound. Please, don't worry about me, captain. Just let me go, okay?" Cagalli almost sighed in exasperation, but held it back.

"Yeah, that's okay for me, but-" Murrue's voice was cut off by a new voice that apparently just arrived. "That's okay captain, let her go. I'll be responsible for her."

All heads in the bridge turned to see the newcomer. "Kisaka! Where have you been?!" Cagalli called, but it sounded more like a yell.

Kisaka ignored her, instead he nodded his head at the Murrue. Murrue gave the kind of face of a scolded kid for a second, but after two seconds she finally nodded, somehow reluctantly.

Kisaka grabbed Cagalli's wrist, and dragged her out of the bridge. "Hey-what're you think you're doing-Kisaka!" Cagalli yelled as she snatched her wrist out of his grasp, and glared at him.

Kisaka stopped and turned to face her glare. "You said that you are going to leave for Orb, right? And now that I'm helping you, you don't want it," Kisaka said.

Cagalli stopped her glare, and said in a disbelieving tone, "Help me? Aren't you usually the one that has to stop me every time I'm doing something nuts?"

Kisaka shook his head and sighed. "Just… come with me now, will you? Jirou's been waiting for you. Now, come on." Kisaka grabbed her wrist again, but this time Cagalli didn't do anything to stop it. She just followed him, albeit a bit reluctantly.

Jirou waited for Cagalli in the hangar, scratching the back of his head nervously. He glanced around to look for the blonde, and finally found her with the tanned colonel dragging her. He stopped scratching when the both of them came nearer. Kisaka approached him first, leaving Cagalli behind, and said, "Commander Asuka."

"Yes sir." Jirou saluted him, even though his rank was higher. Kisaka stared at him directly in the eyes, like looking for seriousness and truth. He then nodded, and then walked back to Cagalli. He dragged her to the opposite part of the hangar where Jirou was standing, and stopped. Cagalli looked at the big steel gate in front of them, and raised a brow. "Why did you bring me here, Kisaka? To this steel gate?"

Kisaka took a breath, and pressed a red button next to the gate. The steel gate opened slowly, revealing nothing but darkness inside. Cagalli's brow rose higher, and she was about to ask something again but was cut off by Kisaka. "Come in, Cagalli."

They both walked into the dark room, and Jirou, feeling curious, followed them also. Kisaka pressed another button inside, and lights began to shine through the room. There, towering gloriously in the middle of the room-which looks like a small hangar-a Gundam, painted shining gold with some light orange and yellow patterns. The light was reflected upon its armor, making the Gundam shining even more. Cagalli and Jirou just stared at the Gundam with jaws slightly dropped, while Kisaka just watched the two of them staring. Then after a minute or two, a projection of Lord Uzumi's face appeared, covering most of the half bottom part of the Gundam.

"Fa… ther?" Cagalli said slowly, looking at her father's projection.

"Cagalli, by the time you saw me like this here, I am probably dead right now. But aside from that, if you see me like this also, that also means that you've seen the Gundam in this hidden hangar. It's probably wrong for me to say this… but I hope, with this Gundam, you will have the power to protect those who are important to you… to us. If you see this Gundam also, that means that Kisaka has given you the permission to protect Orb, with actions, not just speech. That's all I need to tell you Cagalli… and remember this, whatever happens, I'll always stay by your side… even though not physically." Lord Uzumi finished his short speech, and the projection of his face vanished along with his lat sentence.

Cagalli, caused by an unknown but strong force, let a single drop of tear fall down to her starting-to-pink cheek. She didn't know what to say, so she just let her tear explain it all. She might be a strong and stubborn person outside, but inside, she isn't as strong as outside.

* * *

A/N: Really, I'm sorry if this is still a hurried chapter, and a very lame one. Please, no flames… constructive criticism are greatly welcomed, and as usual… one review please? Oh, and for you readers of Shinn's Betrayal, I'm still working on the story, don't worry, I'll never leave it. Anyway, Chapter 2 is done… and once again, I'm very sorry if this story is lame, or hurried, or bad, whatever you think.


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